1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to protective barriers to protect structures such as vessels, docks and harbors in a marine environment from damage.
2. Description of the Related Art
Ships and similar marine structures are vulnerable to attack by watercraft, such as small watercraft that is laden with explosives, other munitions or other threatening materials. Ships such as military vessels and commercial vessels are vulnerable to such threats, especially when they are docked at a port or the like. Likewise, docks, ports and harbors, and their component structures, as well as power plants and the like, are potentially subject to similar threats.
Various systems have been proposed to protect ships from such waterborne threats. Examples include a steel mesh netting barrier as disclosed in U.S. publication 2005/0013668 to Nixon et al., and a security barrier system based on wave attenuating structures as disclosed in PCT publication WO 2005/059275.
A need still exists to provide protective barrier systems for use in marine environments that are lightweight and are easy to deploy. Desirably, such barrier systems also are unaffected by either fresh or salt water. These systems should be able to dissipate an impact force such that a threatening watercraft could be prevented from reaching a position which is close to the structure to be protected, so as to minimize damage to the structure.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide a protective marine barrier system which was lightweight and easy to deploy. Such barrier system would desirably be easy to manufacture and not complex in design.